JustOneMinute

Kill Bambi, Save A Bird

Here is one for the "Nuke the whales" files.

I would kill Bambi to cut down on Lyme disease and traffic accidents, but that is my petty humano-centrism showing.

To be fair, the author does mention ticks in his concluding sentence.

Beyond A Reasonable Doubt

Alan Dershowitz thinks State Prosecutor Corey is a long way from clearing the reasonable doubt threshold in the Zimmerman case.

But here is a bit of a minor point for the Mixed Martial Arts fans - if (IF!) Martin was on top of Zimmerman in a high straddle, how did Zimmerman's gun (holstered in his waistband) become visible (which was how Zimmerman's father described the showdown)? Martin should have been kneeling over his hips or abdomen.

Obviously, scuffles can get confusing very quicky. And this would be a lot more important if Zimmerman had the burden of proving his self-defense story beyond a reasonable doubt.

But it seems to me that Zimmerman mnust have been making a bit of progress in freeing himself if his hips had become visible (and accessible to himself).

THE TIMES ON DEE-DEE: The NY Times describes Trayvon Martin's call with his girlfriend and includes this bit of amusement as to how she was discovered:

Several weeks after Mr. Martin’s death, his father, Tracy, discovered that his son had been talking to the girl just before he was shot. He learned this by reviewing Mr. Martin’s phone bills. She was subsequently interviewed by the Martin family’s lawyer, Benjamin L. Crump, but not by the Sanford police.

Uh huh. Several days after the shooting (I recall March 5 from the evidence file but can't look it up just now) the Sanford PD contacted Mr. Martin and asked for their wireless plan PIN so they could access Martin's phone records. Mr. Martin said he would take their request up with his lawyers, and that is where the Sanford PD drop out of the story, as weeks weeks went by with no apparent action on the cell phone front.

But by happy coincidence, the girlfriend was discovered a day or two after the 911 phone calls were made public. Did the information in those calls aid her recollection? We will never know.

All Zimmerman All The Time

Let's have a new thread.

Operation Sooo-eeee!

Looking for change in the state with Hope.

The WaPo On The Zimmerman Evidence - Are They Kidding?

The WaPo pretends to examine the newly released Zimmerman evidence. They get off to a promising start on the gunshot wound but deliver some dreadfullly incomplete information on other topics.

They lead well with the wound:

Neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman shot Trayvon Martin from a very close range, according to documents a Florida prosecutor released Thursday that indicate a hand-to-hand struggle occurred before the teenager was killed.

A lab report, based on an examination of the two sweatshirts Martin was wearing, found holes and gunshot residue consistent with a “contact shot,” meaning the gun was pressed against Martin’s chest. An autopsy report said that the gunshot wound indicated he was shot from an “intermediate range,” which experts say is between one and 18 inches away.

MSNBC saw a contradiction between contact with the sweatshirt and intermediate range with the skin, so I am glad that some members of the media can sort this out.

However, their attempt to create drama and a sense that Zimmerman was brandishing his weapon and threatening Martin is abysmal journalism:

The documents include new details about what witnesses said they heard and saw that dark, rainy night outside their townhouse windows. One witness told police that he heard someone saying, “I’ve got a gun. I’ve got a gun.”

That is what the witness said and we will accept that is reflecting what the witness heard. However, that was *after* Zimmerman fired the fatal shot, when he had his hands up and was identifying himself to the approaching police officer. In fact (p. 41) the full quote is "I've got a gun, I've got a gun. Take my gun from me".  How did the WaPo miss that?

My understanding is that any concealed carry permit holder would endorse this approach - as a general rule, police don't like to be surprised to find a gun on someone. (Zimmerman still got cuffed, but he had to expect that.)

Comparably shameful is the mystery the WaPo creates around the question of who was heard screaming on the recorded 911 call:

Witness accounts indicate that in some cases, officers seemed to have rushed to judgment about one of the most critical questions in the case: who was screaming in the last seconds before the gunshot rang out.

One distraught witness, said she who regretted not helping the person yelling outside her window, said in her handwritten statement that an investigator tried to comfort her by saying that the cries for help “were not the person who died.”

A police report also concluded that the voice screaming in the background of a recorded 911 call placed by a resident was Zimmerman, “who was apparently yelling for help as he was being battered by Trayvon Martin.”

But an FBI audio analysis of that crucial call could not determine whether it was Martin or Zimmerman who was screaming, because of the poor quality of the recording and the “extreme emotional state” of the person screaming, an FBI report said.

Also included in the reports is an account of a meeting between an investigator and Tracy Martin two days after his son was shot. The investigator played the 911 call to Martin and asked him whether the voice calling for help was his son’s.

“Mr. Martin, clearly emotionally impacted by the recording, quietly responded no,” the report said.

But in the days and weeks after the shooting, Tracy Martin and Sybrina Fulton, the teenager’s mother, said they had no doubt that the screams were those of their son. In an interview with an investigator, Zimmerman’s father said, “That is absolutely, positively George Zimmerman yelling for help.”

What the WaPo fails to report is that the Sanford PD had a witness who was thirty feet from the action and was crystal clear that the white or Hispanic guy in red was on bottom, getting beaten by a black guy, and screaming for help (p. 38). This is "John", who spoke to the local Fox station the day after the shooting and told a similar story to the police.

Ye, witnesses get confused, but the police hardly leapt to the conclusion that Zimmerman was screaming for help.

And from another perspective, Zimmerman has the injuries of a guy in trouble who might well need help. What would have prompted Martin to be screaming?

That is misleading and incomplete reporting by the WaPo.

Zimmerman Case - "Contact Shot" Versus "Intermediate Range"

MSNBC has not had time to do their homework with the Zimmerman evidence dump [but the WaPo did; see UPDATE]:

But the documents give contradictory assessments of how far away Zimmerman was when he shot Martin. 

Lab tests by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's Orlando operations center concluded that residue tests on Martin's sweatshirt were "consistent with a contact shot" — that is, one in which the muzzle of the weapon is physically touching the victim.

But the autopsy report from the Volusia County (Fla.) Medical Examiner's office reached a different conclusion based on examination of the wound itself, saying, "This wound is consistent with a wound of entrance of intermediate range."

The report doesn't define "intermediate range."

As several commenters explained to us yesterday, when a pistol or rifle is fired the projectile, gunpowder (including unburned powder) and expanding gases all exit the barrel.  If the victim is close enough to the barrel, the projectile as well as gunpowder particles and gas residue will end up on, or in, the victim. If the victim is more than a few feet away, the shot is "distant" and only the projectile will make impact [Ref 1, 2].

Intermediate Range Definition: Hot powder grains accompany bullet to wound site & are driven into skin, leaving small red marks on skin - stippling/tattooing

Short & Close Range Definition: Bullet hole, stippling & soot present

Contact Range Definition: Bullet hole, muzzle burn mark & impression of firearm present; loose fit - near contact; cornea of soot may be present where weapon not placed directly against skin

Direct contact is pretty obvious when the gun is against the skin. However, as one report explained, an "intermediate" result would occur even over a distance of an inch or two if the victim was wearing clothing or standing, for example, behind a door because most of the powder and gas would be blocked by the obstacle.

So in the current situation there is no contradiction at all - the FDLE placed the gun directly on Martin's sweatshirt (beneath which he had on a t-shirt); the medical examiner, looking just at the body, saw powder residue and stippling consistent with an intermediate range, which would be explained by the two layers of clothing.

ERRATA: Per the police report (p. 16 .pdf) the bullet casing was recovered in the grass. Someone cared, I don't recall why. I do recall Mr. Turner gloating, however, so this "Told you so" thing must be catching.

UPDATE: The WaPo lead:

Neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman shot Trayvon Martin from a very close range, according to documents a Florida prosecutor released Thursday that indicate a hand-to-hand struggle occurred before the teenager was killed.

A lab report, based on an examination of the two sweatshirts Martin was wearing, found holes and gunshot residue consistent with a “contact shot,” meaning the gun was pressed against Martin’s chest. An autopsy report said that the gunshot wound indicated he was shot from an “intermediate range,” which experts say is between one and 18 inches away.

Zimmerman Case - Evidence Released, But Where?

[MSNBC has 183 pages of documents]

[UPDATE: ABC News has quite a headline:

Cops, Witnesses Back Up George Zimmerman's Version of Trayvon Martin Shooting

MSNBC:

Court docs: Trayvon Martin shooting 'ultimately avoidable by Zimmerman']

The Orlando Sentinel has a story on the new Zimmerman evidence dump but I can't find the raw material at the court website yet. [MSNBC has 183 pages here.]

JACKSONVILLE - Never before seen evidence in the case against George Zimmerman shows that Sanford Police believed the encounter between Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin was "ultimately avoidable," if Zimmerman had "remained in his vehicle and awaited the arrival of law enforcement," according to hundreds of pages of evidence in the case released this afternoon.

Direct TV prepared the arrest affidavit: "Don't get out of your car.  If you get out of your car...".

Somehow, an even more helpful societal message - don't punch strangers in the face - seems to have been lost.

There is a cryptic tox result:

The autopsy report says there was THC — the active chemical found in marijuana — in Trayvon's blood and urine.

Before I say "I told you so", let me ask this - would this result indicate recent drug use, as in, Martin went out for a smoke to prime himself for the NBA All-Star game, or would it mean he had smoked in the previous weeks or month (Martin was on suspension for having an empty marijuana baggie, after all)? I know the normal employment test can pick up deferred use, but maybe this was a more time-sensitive blood test or some such. [In UPDATES I am currently concluding the drug use was probably *not* recent, but I am hardly an expert.]

Zimmerman did say on the 911 call that Martin looked like he was "on drugs or something".  The defense will find this to be very interesting.

The report by Serino said Martin had $40.15, Skittles candy, a red lighter, headphones and a photo pin in his pocket.

A lighter but nothing to light. He smoked 'em, he ditched 'em, he never had 'em. Pick one.

MORE: CNN posts the autopsy and has a story on the drug result:

(CNN) -- Trayvon Martin had drugs in his system when he was fatally shot earlier this year by George Zimmerman in Sanford, Florida, according to autopsy results released Thursday.

Martin's blood contained THC, which is the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, according to an autopsy conducted February 27 -- the day after the teenager was shot dead.

Toxicology tests found elements of the drug in the teenager's chest blood -- 1.5 nanograms per milliliter of one type (THC), as well as 7.3 nanograms of another type (THC-COOH) -- according to the medical examiner's report. There was also a presumed positive test of cannabinoids in Martin's urine. It was not immediately clear how significant these amounts were.

Concentrations of THC routinely rise to 100 to 200 ng/ml after marijuana use, though it typically falls to below 5 ng/ml within three hours of it being smoked, according to information on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's website.

While some states have zero-tolerance policies for any drug traces for driving while impaired, others set certain benchmarks, the website of California's Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs notes. In Nevada, that equates to 2 ng/ml for THC and 5 ng/ml for THC-COOH -- also known as marijuana metabolite. The cutoff level in Ohio is 2 ng/ml for THC and 50 ng/ml for THC-COOH.

If I am following along, this means that Martin exceeded one impairment threshold but not the other in Nevada and was below both thresholds in Ohio. And the obvious caveat is that the autopsy was a day later; I have no idea whether death would halt the breakdown of those drugs, but I bet we will find out.

From the California branch of NORML:

Blood tests are a better detector of recent use, since they measure the actual presence of THC in the system. Because they are invasive and difficult to administer, blood tests are used less frequently. They are typically used in investigations of accidents, injuries and DUIs, where they can give a useful indication of whether the subject was actually under the influence.

We also learn that as THC is metabolized it forms

THC-COOH, which can linger in the body for days and weeks with no impairing effects.

And pressing on: 

Blood Tests

Unlike urine tests, blood tests detect the active presence of THC in the bloodstream. In the case of smoked marijuana, THC peaks rapidly in the first few minutes after inhaling, often to levels above 100 ng/ml in blood plasma. It then declines quickly to single-digit levels within an hour. High THC levels are therefore a good indication that the subject has smoked marijuana recently. THC can remain at low but detectable levels of 1- 2 ng/ml for 8 hours or more without any measurable signs of impairment. Chronic users have been found to show residual blood THC levels of 1.5 (+/- 0.5) ng/ml for a full week after ceasing use [Karschner].

Note: THC blood levels above are recorded in terms of concentration in serum or plasma. Most U.S. labs report levels based on whole blood instead. Concentrations in whole blood are about half as high. Therefore 1 - 2 ng/ml in plasma is equal to 0.5 - 1.0 ng/ml in whole blood.

Unlike urine, blood test results can give a useful indicator of whether one is impaired by marijuana. Studies have shown that high THC blood levels are correlated with impaired driving. An expert panel review of scientific studies on driving under the influence of cannabis concluded that THC levels above 7 - 10 ng/ml in plasma or 3.5 - 5 ng/ml in blood indicate likely impairment [Grotenhermen].

More here:

Marijuana and Impairment
In A Primer of Drug Action, pharmacologist Robert Julian, MD, PhD, wrote, “ . . . absorption of inhaled drugs is rapid and complete. The onset of behavioral effects of THC in smoked marijuana occurs almost immediately after smoking begins and corresponds with the rapid attainment of peak concentrations in plasma. Unless more is smoked, the effects seldom last longer than 3 to 4 hours.”

In the Journal of Cannabis Therapeutics, Franjo Grotenhermen, MD, wrote, ”Pulmonary [lung] assimilation of inhaled THC causes a maximum plasma concentration within minutes, while psychotropic effects [the “high”] start within seconds to a few minutes, reach a maximum after 15 to 30 minutes, and taper off within 2 or 3 hours.”

In summary, any mental or motor “impairment” is associated with the psychotropic effects (the “high”), and these effects are equally associated with pain relief. When the plasma THC levels return to low-levels at 3 hours and baseline around 4 hours after smoking marijuana, the high resolves, and so too does any impairment. This is important: no impairment after 3 or 4 hours from taking THC.

Nevada talked about raising the level to 15.

And this chart (from a marijuana advocacy group) shows THC and THC-COOH levels after one joint. If we work with that, it is hard to see how Martin could have smoked a joint in the previous hour.

IF I CAN GET OFF DRUGS FOR A MOMENT: The Orlando Sentinel is continually updating their story, which now includes this on the screaming:

Two FBI audio specialists tried to identify who was screaming in the background of one 911 call and concluded it was impossible, according to the documents. The quality of the recording was not good enough and the screams didn't last long enough, they wrote.

We gleaned this from the bond hearing, but I will take another "Told you so". And while I indulge my dark side, let me wonder about this - does "Dolt" mean "Dances on lefty tools"?

The FBI report audio report starts on p. 146. The FBI took a listen to the "Effing Punks/Phones/C**ns/Pukes" mystery but came up empty; the FDLE took a stand in their arrest affidavit, apparently on their own initiative.

As to the screaming (p. 147-8):

"ULTIMATELY AVOIDABLE": Several news outlets are keying on the notion that the tragedy was "ultimately aviodble" if Zimmerman had stayed in his car. The complete passage includes a second scenario - Zimmerman identifies himself as a concerned citizen:

It is not clear at all as to how their encounter unfolded, so how do we know this did not happen? And in any case, both Jeralyn Merritt and Bill Jacobson explain that this "Butterfly Effect" theory of the crime is not how the law works.

THE CHALLENGE OF EYEWITNESS TESTIMONY: Two people (the 13 year old and a woman) saw someone lying on the ground calling for help, but no assailant.  That's on p. 42.

ID'ING The SCREAM: Mr. Martin's statement (p. 56) that the screaming heard on a 911 call was not from Trayvon was not helpful to an arrest:

DOES ANYBODY REALLY KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS?

This 7-Eleven video seems to have a timeatamp in the upper left corner. One set of numbers is fixed at 18:9:9, which woul dbe one second short of 7PM.

However, the numbers that actually change as the 'action' unfolds run from 23:44 to 24:14 (roughly half a minute), with the lead numbers apparently cut from the picture. Presumably the missing hour number does not correspond to 7PM, so I infer that either (a) Martin left the 7-Eleven at 6:24 and took a slow walk home, or (b) that timestamp means something else entirely, or is erroneous.

Presumably the police have pinned this down, but I don't see it in the reports.

 

Zimmerman Case - Eyewitness Contamination and Witness Deconstruction

Jeralyn Merritt tracks the evolution of a witness's story from her first 911 call on through various media appearances.

This is the 'mystery witness' on Anderson Cooper, who saw little and heard less, but has been getting more emphatic over time. My snark for the first Cooper interview - "Anyone autotuning that should include "Getting dark, too dark to see; feel like someone's knocking on heaven's door".

That said, the O'Mara defense team will be going through this exercise to prep for this possible witness. If they are smart (and want to hold down the billable hours), they will start with Ms. Merritt's work.

Obama Brings Unity To Washington

It's Hope and Change we can believe in as Obama proposes legislation that sweeps to unanimous votes in the House and Senate:

President Obama's budget suffered a second embarrassing defeat Wednesday, when senators voted 99-0 to reject it.

Coupled with the House's rejection in March, 414-0, that means Mr. Obama's budget has failed to win a single vote in support this year.

It's great to see Obama uniting Washington and developing some momentum. Especially as that momentum seems to be carrying him to the exit.

Zimmerman Case - Keeping Hate Alive At The Times

The NY Times can't quite bring itself to report on the latest news in the Zimmerman case - Zimmerman's medical file shows he was banged up and Martin's autopsy showed bloody knuckles - so they hand the mike to the Ben Crump, the Martin family attorney, and rehash every possible mistake made by the Sanford PD.

Presumably their goal is to pretend that, however ludicrous the current situation, the media and the prosecutor acted in good faith in bringing us here.

What would really be impressive would be a mea culpa about the Times mis-reporting and errors. Some of those errors have been corrected. On the other hand, the Times also makes new ones, such as the laugher in today's story (my emphasis):

Given Mr. Zimmerman’s assertion that he was acting in self-defense, and lacking enough evidence to the contrary, the original prosecutor in the case, Norm Wolfinger, whose jurisdiction includes Sanford, filed no charges against him.

That decision resulted in an increasingly strident public outcry. After Gov. Rick Scott of Florida contacted Mr. Wolfinger and had a conversation with him in late March, the prosecutor recused himself, citing, among other things, an unspecified conflict of interest.

He cited "an unspecified conflict of interest"? Really? Until I can find the full letter I will have to rely on this reporting, which quotes the letter as follows:

"In the interest of the public safety of the citizens of Seminole County and to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest, I would respectfully request the executive assignment of another state attorney for the investigation and any prosecution arising from the circumstances surrounding the death of Trayvon B. Martin," Wolfinger wrote.

I think even the Times can understand the difference between the appearance of a conflict and an unspecified conflict. And I am sure many of their readers could, if the Times chose to report this accurately.

Full disclosure - I had my fun with this at the end of March. Basically, lefties and Ben Crump, the Al Sharpton of the South, were screaming that we needed a new investigation, that the Sanford PD was inept, and that DA Wolfinger was covering for their ineptitude by not charging Zimmerman. My goodness, even the Times was aware of some of this.

Then Wolfinger stepped down, citing a desire to avoid the *appearance* of a conflict.  Immediately lefties began screaming that it was Very Suspicious that he had stepped down, and wondering about the mysterious conflict that forced him to do so.

Whatever. The Times may fix this one day.

JUST ONE MORE: The Times can't let go of the notion that slack gun control and Stand Your Ground is the problem:

What appears unchanged since the beginning, however, is that investigators say they do not know who started the fight. Florida’s controversial Stand Your Ground law, which has come to shadow a number of homicide cases since it was adopted in 2005, justifies the use of deadly force in certain threatening situations but does not require a person to retreat. The law became the framework within which the police and prosecutors had to work after Mr. Zimmerman claimed that Mr. Martin confronted and pounced on him.

Stand Your Ground is not in play when the victim is lying on the ground. New York is a 'duty to retreat' state, but no one (with the possible exception of Chuck Norris) has a duty to execute a blinding Ninja back-flip and roll while the assailant is on their chest.

WELL, YES, THIS BOTHERS ME: I think this error has gone unreported:

The vehicle that Mr. Zimmerman was driving when he first spotted Mr. Martin was mistakenly not secured by officers as part of the crime scene. The vehicle was an important link in the fatal encounter because it was where Mr. Zimmerman called the police to report a suspicious teenager in a hooded sweatshirt roaming through the Retreat. Mr. Zimmerman also said he was walking back to the vehicle when he was confronted by Mr. Martin before shooting him.

Yike! I wrote this in late March when I was attempting to sort through the basic geography of the encounter:

However, a perusal of the basic geography says two things: *IF* Zimmerman left his SUV as I have placed it, the idea that Zimmerman cornered Martin is hard to picture.  There are lots of open spaces, lots of ways from A to B, lots of places that are accessible by foot but not so much by car - running away with commitment and purpose should have been a fool-proof strategy.  If, that is, calling 911 or screaming for help was for some reason off the board.  The idea that Zimmerman overtook a scared kid in flight is hard to sustain.

That said, what if Zimmerman parked a bit down Twin Trees Lane towards the informal, unmarked cut through.  Now after he sees Martin run and gets out of his car, maybe he heads up the commons area while Martin was headed down it.  I score that as 'hmmm', because the police surely know where they recovered his car and the revised location doesn't jibe with the 911 call (he couldn't see the club house from down on Twin Trees, and the mailboxes he mentioned are central for the complex and near the clubhouse).  Still, cars can roll - we hope the police have thought this through.

Well, maybe the police haven't thought this through. From the Times story it seems as if the wife recovered the SUV before the police realized its presence or posssible significance. That said this post reassured me as to the SUV placement.

AUTOPISIES AND BULLET WOUNDS: From CBS:

Details from Trayvon Martin's autopsy show the bullet entered the left side of his chest, and shattered the ventrical, one of his heart's two large chambers but the round did not leave his body.

The reports also noted the fatal wound's surrounded by a two-by-two inch pattern called stippling, caused by gunpower burns. It suggests Zimmerman fired inches away from the teenager.

NBC:

Florida teenager Trayvon Martin died from a single gunshot wound to the chest fired from “intermediate range,” according to an autopsy report reviewed Wednesday by NBC News.

The official report, prepared by the medical examiner in Volusia County, Fla., also found that the 17-year-old Martin had one other fresh injury – a small abrasion, no more than a quarter-inch  in size –  on his left ring finger below the knuckle.

"Intermediate range" is described here (gunshot pictures not for the squeamish); the omniscient 'cboldt' advises us it is roughly a few inches to a few feet, presumably depending in part on whether clothing had an effect. Various references and graphic pics here, thanks to 'paulo'.

Intermediate Range Definition: Hot powder grains accompany bullet to wound site & are driven into skin, leaving small red marks on skin - stippling/tattooing

Short & Close Range Definition: Bullet hole, stippling & soot present

Contact Range Definition: Bullet hole, muzzle burn mark & impression of firearm present; loose fit - near contact; cornea of soot may be present where weapon not placed directly against skin

Assuming Zimmerman is right-handed, if Martin was facing him Zimmerman would probably shoot him on the left side, as described.

At the bond hearing CNN missed it in their transcript but a live blogger had thisL:

10:46 - [Lead investigator] Gilbreath says evidence says the gunshot was in close proximity due to powder burns on the sweatshirt and stippling.

CNN recapped that:

And then the judge - right to the heart of it -- asked about the stippling of the gun and how close and about the gun shot. Well, what does that show? It shows that there was not a shooting at a distance, but that there was apparently mutual combat where the two of them were engaged within immediate proximity to each other, which suggests that one really doesn't know what happened because it wasn't from a distance which would show a depraved mind, but, in fact, right there during regional combat.

"Regional"?

Memes Immortal

Some bad "facts" are too good to bury - here is Taylor Marsh commenting on the latest medical news in the Zimmerman case, with a focus on his Adderall use:

The Orlando Sentinel reported in March that George Zimmerman “called 911 dozens of times in the months that led to the fatal shooting.” He would report “suspicious persons” who also happened to be black four times, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

So, you have an unarmed teenage African American male being followed by a man who thinks Trayvon Martin is “a real suspicious guy,” who also sounds paranoid.

My goodness - was it really over a month ago we pried a correction out of the NY Times on the 911 call question? Rod Dreher was citing the 46 calls in fourteen months as evidence of Zimmerman's paranoia, and eventually the Paper of Record nodded to reality - the 46 calls dated from 2004, not January 2011.

That won't change the narrative for some, but it would be nice if the delegates from the Reality-Based Community could come to agreement on some basic facts.

And while on that topic of Memes Immortal, New York Magazine delivers this:

The relative size of the men has been debated, with Martin described as 6 feet tall and between 140 and 160 pounds, while Zimmerman is about 5 feet, 9 inches and 200 pounds.

Interesting. A 2005 booking sheet had Zimmerman at 250 lbs, so that was widely reported for a while. When the first ABC video of Zimmerman at the police station was released, folks realized he could only weigh 250 if he had an adamantium skeleton, so new guesses, such as 200 (Miami Herald, in a now-dead link), were offered.

The NY Times chimed in with 170 on April 1, presumably based on Zimmerman's friend Joe Oliver; Zimmerman's current arrest sheet shows 185.

The New Yorker is resisting reality and making Zimmerman a bigger threat than he is. My surprise can only be imagined.

FWIW: If I could have figured out Ms. Marsh's comment registration this post would never have been written. I tried to log on to her site with Facebok and, although I was struck by the scope and achievement of her many friends, I never did find an opportunity to leave a comment.

Now Sugar Eats Your Brain

Rats do it, people do it... consume too much sugar, that is. Also, run through mazes.

Rats consuming a high fructose diet had impaired memory, based on their performance in a maze test.  Adding omega 3 fatty acids back to their diet helped mitigate the fructose problem. However the rats with the best memory function were those who had no (minimal*) fructose and an adequate amount of omega 3s.

This summary leaves the impression that only two groups of rats were tested (high fructose with or without omega 3).

The paper makes it clear that two other groups with no fructose were also tested. The no fructose/deficient omega 3 group did worse on the memory tests than the no fructose/adequate omega 3 group, but not as badly as the high fructose/adequate omega 3 group. The high fructose/deficient omega 3 group brought up the rear, but no, that was not because they had become too obese to waddle thrugh the maze.

The takeaway (assuming this holds up in people, which it will) - Americans eat too much sugar, which contributes to obesity, diabetes, Alzheimers, and other mental deterioration. Fish oil supplementation can help; cutting way, way back on sugar can help more.

All of this is addressed in a new-ish book, "The Blood Sugar Solution" by Dr. Hyman.

And I had a post last February about the inevitable taxation and regulation of sugar. The increase in Western consumption over the last two centuries is astonishing, and apparently beyond our metabolism:

Author Robert Lustig is a YouTube hero for his long lecture on the evils of sugar.  Gary Taubes described Dr. Lustig's thinking in a NY Times magazine article, "Is Sugar Toxic?". The gist of the gist - fructose, half of the common sucrose molecule, is metabolized differently from glucose, the normal constituent of other starchy foods.  Our bodies just weren't designed to process the amounts of fructose people routinely consume these days, and the results are visible everywhere.

A bit of British history:

Britain's annual per capita consumption of sugar was 4lbs in 1704, 18lbs in 1800, 90lbs in 1901 - a 22-fold increase to the point where Britons had the highest sugar intake in Europe.

Here in the US we are up to about 150 lbs per person per year, up about 50% from 1950.  Set against that is the Australian Paradox - since 1980 obesity Down Under has tripled while sugar consumption has fallen.  Hmm... is anyone going to let a bit of science come between them and a new batch of regulations and taxes?

Treats used to be, well, a treat. Now its a breakfast bar. Also, a lunch bar and dessert after dinner. And a snack or two.

As to what is happening Down Under with sugar and obesity, I would love an explanation. A short summary of the original study is here; a rebuttal is here, and the vigorous dissent by Rory Robertson is continued here (Mr. Robertson is another "I dropped sugar and twenty pounds" guy; we are everwhere!). His gist - bad data led to a bad conclusion. Bonus gist - the 'Paradox' authors favor a low glycemic index approach. Since the glycemic index measures glucose in the bloodstream, fructose always scores well.

From the news account:

Professor Swinburn, who is the director of the World Health Organisation collaborating centre for obesity prevention at Deakin University, says the study's summary of the data as showing ''a consistent and substantial decline in total refined or added sugar by Australians over the past 30 years'' belies the facts ''and is a serious over-call in my opinion''.

His conclusion is that ''the ecological trends of sugar and obesity are pretty well matched and I do not believe there is any paradox to explain''.

MINIMAL FRUCTOSE: From the paper:

The two custom diets used were based on the composition of the American Institute of Nutrition diet and prepared commercially (Dyet s, Bethlehem, PA, USA) as previously described (Greiner et al. 2003). Both diets had the same basal macronutrients, vitamins, minerals and basal fats (hydrogenated coconut and safflower oils). For the casein source, vitamin-free casein Alacid 710 (NZMP North America Inc., CA, USA) was used. Dextrose, maltose-dextrin, cornstarch and sucrose were used as carbohydrate sources.

There will be fructose and glucose in the sucrose, so the "no fructose" diet is my misnomer.

It's The Tomahawk Chop For Elizabeth Warren

Elizabeth Warren, a candidate for the Senate and the Cherokee tribe, is fading in at least one of those efforts, but she is delivering great material for Saturday Night Live:

Society: ‘We have no proof’ of Liz Warren’s claim

By Hillary Chabot

Elizabeth Warren’s embattled campaign faced another setback yesterday after the New England Historic Genealogical Society said there is no proof of her Native American heritage, forcing the novice candidate back to square one in the ongoing scandal, according to pundits.

Wild Bill Jacobson gets results!

But it ain't over 'til it's over, and Ms. Warren has another arrow in her quiver:

Another claim of Warren’s Native American lineage had come from her campaign, which had sent the Herald an undated Muskogee Sunday Phoenix article saying Warren’s cousin had “been involved” in the Five Civilized Tribes Museum in Oklahoma.

The cousin, Janyne “Candy” Rowsey, is listed in the article as judging a student art show at the museum. Her obituary shows she also edited “Pow Wow Chow,” a Native American cookbook produced by the museum. A spokeswoman at the museum said yesterday that she recognized the Rowsey name but she could not detail the cousin’s involvement at the tribal art museum.

This is a candidate for the US Senate? Wow. Just, wow. OK, just 'pow wow'. Wasn't there a sequel for dog lovers (NO, not Barack!) titled "Bow Wow Chow"? Darn this Amazon...

Waves of nostalgia are washing over me as I have a Nineties flashback. The best thing - actually the only good thing - about seeing the Atlanta Braves in the baseball playoffs each year was watching the painfully PC Jane Fonda doing the Tomahawk Chop.

And now Elizabeth Warren is talking up "Pow Wow Chow" as her entree into Cherokee Nation. SNL should save their scriptwriters some time and just read the Warren press releases.

Zimmerman Medical Evidence

Two new stories on medical evidence in the Zimmerman case:

ABC:

ABC News Exclusive: Zimmerman Medical Report Shows Broken Nose, Lacerations After Trayvon Martin Shooting

A medical report compiled by the family physician of accused Trayvon Martin murderer George Zimmerman and obtained exclusively by ABC News found that Zimmerman was diagnosed with a "closed fracture" of his nose, a pair of black eyes, two lacerations to the back of his head and a minor back injury the day after he fatally shot Martin during an alleged altercation.

Unsurprising, considering neighbors had reported a bandaged-up Zimmerman weeks ago.

WFTV9:

Autopsy results show Trayvon Martin had injuries to his knuckles

SANFORD, Fla. —

WFTV has confirmed that autopsy results show 17-year-old Trayvon Martin had injuries to his knuckles when he died.

The information could support George Zimmerman's claim that Martin beat him up before Zimmerman shot and killed him.

Richard Kurtz, a black (IIRC) mortician who serves the black community, had the good sense to see nothing unusual about Martin when he prepared him for the funeral. Anyone who took that seriously is surprised by the current report. Since you ask, I expressed reservations about the mortician at the end of this old post.

MORE: The all-news WCBS 880 in New York provides this narrative-shifting coverage:

George Zimmerman's head wounds after Trayvon Martin shooting likely bolster self-defense claims

(CBS News) Medical records showing that George Zimmerman was treated for a fractured nose and cuts to the back of his head after fatally shooting 17-year-old Trayvon Martin will likely bolster Zimmerman's argument that Martin attacked him, CBS News legal analyst Jack Ford said on "CBS This Morning" Wednesday.

...

"This now allows the defense to show up in the courtroom, let George Zimmerman tell his story and bring in a medical expert that says, 'Black and blue under the eyes, broken nose, cut on the back of the head,'" said Ford, "and the defense can argue that's consistent with George Zimmerman being attacked by Trayvon Martin, and then the Stand Your Ground defense comes into play."

Well, Stand Your Ground doesn't apply when you are lying on the ground, but we get his drift.

They have some pushback a bit later in the story:

Ford, a former prosecutor, said that the medical report's revelations, while not good for the prosecution, don't exactly torpedo their case.

"Here's what you're going to get: I'm sure the prosecution is going to say, 'Hey, you know what this shows? This shows that Trayvon Martin was fighting for his life because he was attacked by George Zimmerman here,'" said Ford, "and the defense is going to say, 'That's not so at all, and we've got the medical testimony to show it.'"

Hmm. Just how are they going to contradict Zimmerman's story? From the Zimmerman bond hearing when O'Mara, the defense counsel, was grilling Gilbreath, the lead investigator for the state:

O'MARA: [Do you have] Any evidence that conflicts any eyewitnesses, anything that conflicts with the contention that Mr. Martin assaulted first?

GILBREATH: That contention that was given to us by him, other than filling in the figures being one following or chasing the other one, as to who threw the first blow, no.

The state can certainly speculate but at some point their story needs to explain these injuries to Zimmerman and Martin. How they establish beyond a reasonable doubt their theory of Zimmerman as a depraved aggressor without actual evidence remains a bit of a puzzle. Jeralyn Merritt offers a well-informed guess as to the state's theory but doesn't think it will fly.